There is no pretension at the corner of 4th and 6th, and that is exactly why Parkhurst keeps showing up to watch the game at Jolly Cool.
Published May 6, 2026 · By Daniel Okafor
Jolly Cool sits on Parkhurst's 4th Avenue, on the corner of 6th Street, in one of Johannesburg's most walkable restaurant strips. In Your Pocket calls it a 4th Avenue favourite, as easygoing as its name suggests, and the description holds on any Saturday. Bench tables spill onto the pavement, couches fill the inside, and the screens carry whatever match the room came for.
This is a bar that earns its loyalty through ease rather than polish. Pool tables anchor the back, the famous jam jars do the heavy lifting at the bar, and the menu keeps it simple with pizza, burgers, chips, and a few salads. People who want a refined night should look elsewhere. People who want a loud, cheap, easy afternoon among friends will be at home. For the wider field of where to watch in the city, our guide to the best sports bars in Johannesburg sets the scene.
Order a jam jar and a pizza. The signature jam jars are the drink the place is known for, and the pizzas earn steady praise on Tripadvisor alongside what reviewers call surprisingly good burgers. Prices stay affordable, a $$ room that students and after work crowds can both stretch to. Beer is cold and the kitchen keeps it coming through the second half.
The crowd is lively but laid back. Parkhurst locals treat it as the default, students fill it on weekends, and the energy stays sociable rather than rowdy. Reviewers call it one of the most popular bars in Parkhurst, always full of people, with quick and friendly service even when the room is packed.
Go on a weekend and accept that parking is the catch. The bar sits right on the corner of the two main Parkhurst roads, so arrive on foot if you can or come early for a marquee fixture. A weekday evening is the calmer way to enjoy the pool tables and the screens without the scrum. For the run of tournament fixtures, our roundup of where to watch the 2026 World Cup in Johannesburg is the companion read.
What regulars value most is that it never tries too hard. The screens are on, the jam jars are full, and the walk home along 4th Avenue is short. The common complaints are the parking and the smoke, since the outside section draws a shisha crowd, so the pavement tables get hazy on a busy night.
The bar fits a few specific moods. It is the right call for a student stretching a small budget across a long Saturday, for a Parkhurst local who wants the game without booking anything, and for a group happy to trade polish for an easy, sociable buzz. It is the wrong call for a refined dinner or a quiet date, since the room is loud and the pavement gets smoky. Jolly Cool knows what it is, and that honesty is most of its charm.
Jolly Cool pairs naturally with the rest of the northern circuit. If 4th Avenue is full, Benchwarmers in Rosebank brings the bigger screen count, while Founders at Giles in Craighall Park offers a calmer pub for the same game. Both sit inside the broader Johannesburg sports bar scene worth exploring across a season.
Sources: Jolly Cool official site (2026); In Your Pocket Johannesburg sports bars guide; Tripadvisor Jolly Cool Bar and Restaurant reviews; Jolly Cool 4th Avenue Parkhurst social pages.